Jim Whitman’s signs for Bossier City marshal are springing up in Bossier City yards and along roadways, and motorists traveling Bossier City’s Benton Road overpass are likely to see Carl Richard’s digital billboard ad announcing his candidacy for the same job.

While qualifying for public office is still a month and a half away, the Bossier City marshal’s race is already underway. Both candidates have some ideas on the future of the office. They’ll no doubt be walking Bossier City neighborhoods, talking with residents and visiting with various groups – but in the meantime, here’s a snapshot of the candidates and a few of their plans.

Whitman, a 10-year veteran of the Bossier City Marshal’s Office, serves as chief deputy in charge of courtroom security and issues involving the court. (His counterpart is Deputy Shelly Anderson, who manages the cyber crimes unit.) He has a couple of priorities for the marshal’s office including new equipment and vehicles, adding a deputy to the cyber crimes unit, and expanding the marshal’s office to address internet crimes against children and child pornography.

“We’re finding that internet crimes involving children and child pornography are just the tip of the iceberg,” Whitman said. “The two are overlapping a lot with children being prostituted. Human trafficking is becoming one of the most profitable of crimes.”

As a result, Whitman believes it’s necessary to add a deputy to the cyber crimes unit, which is an active member of the state Attorney General’s Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce – as are all Bossier City/Parish law enforcement agencies.

Whitman would also add new equipment to the cyber crimes unit, which processes cell phones and computers for a variety of law enforcement agencies. And, he would replace some vehicles in the Marshal’s fleet – especially the aging Ford Crown Victorias, which are no longer produced. And he’s looking at the cost advantage of replacing gas guzzlers with CNG-fueled SUVs, saying the focus is effective vehicles with efficient gas mileage.

Beyond the one addition to the cyber crimes unit, Whitman doesn’t see a need to hire more deputies, saying he doesn’t like to hire just to hire.

Carl Richard has worked for the Shreveport City Marshal’s Office since 1997 but served a four-year stint in the Bossier City Marshal’s Office before moving across the river to work.

Richard said he believes it’s important for voters to understand the chief functions of the Marshal’s office, which are to provide courtroom security and serve legal papers.

Richard said he’s fully prepared to serve as Marshal having handled seizures and repossessions, budget and inventory, and a variety of other functions in the Shreveport marshal’s Office.

He’s committed to enhancing Bossier City courtroom security by sending deputies to the U.S. Marshal’s Federal Enforcement Training Center in Georgia for courtroom security training. He would also send deputies to the U.S. Marshal’s course for fugitive investigators, which would better prepare deputies to serve high risk warrants and for fugitive apprehension.

Richard said the plans to dedicate to deputies to a full-time warrant team to execute bench warrants issued by the Bossier City Court. And, he’d like to work with the Shreveport City Marshal’s Office to create a joint task force of deputies authorized to serve warrants on both sides of the river.

Richard would also maintain the Bossier Marshal’s office presence in the ICAC Taskforce – and he’d maintain the current staff that participates in the taskforce.

“You can’t find experience like that,” Richard said of the staff that participates in the taskforce.

Finally, Richard said he would use the marshal’s office discretionary fund to offset the use of taxpayer dollars to fund the office. He would use that those funds to pay for such items as cell phones, vehicles and salaries.

While Richard and his family have lived in Bossier City all his life, Whitman and his family have lived in the Bossier City area for nearly 40 years. Whitman is also a military veteran and has worked in business before joining the Bossier City Marshal’s Office.